Perorate
Verb
- Speak at length.
- (Archaic) Sum up and conclude a speech.
Example Sentences
“He could perorate about his knowledge of World War II for hours.”
“The bride begged her father not to perorate at her wedding reception.”
“Just when we thought the speech would never end, the speaker finally perorated and left the stage.”
Word Origin
Latin, early 17th century
Why this word?
The word “perorate” contains an important clue about its definition — the word “orate,” which means “to make a speech, especially pompously or at length.” “To perorate” is to drag your oration out for longer than necessary. This word finds its origins in the Latin verb “perorare,” a combination of “per-” (“through”) and “orare” (“speak”). Speaking of perorating, the Guinness World Record for “Longest U.N. Speech” belongs to V.K. Krishna Menon, India’s former minister of defence, who perorated for nearly eight hours while defending India’s position on Kashmir in 1957.